From the production cycle to battery disposal, all the environmental risks of electric cars:«It pollutes less but let's not stop the research» – The interviews

Abbotto (Bicocca):«Science converges in saying that electric cars have a much lower environmental impact».But among the experts there are those who urge us not to forget about biofuels

There turning point announced by the European Union in recent days leaves no room for second thoughts:the future of mobility will be electric.On February 14, the European Parliament has given its definitive approval to ban, starting from 2035, the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles.Behind this decision is the desire to make the transport sector more sustainable, which alone is responsible for 16% of global greenhouse gas emissions.Yet, not everyone agrees that electric cars are a solution green.There are those who raise the problem of battery disposal and those who point out that focusing everything on a single technology may not prove to be a far-sighted choice. But what is the true environmental impact of an electric car? Is it greater, less or equal to that of a petrol car?«At the moment the situation is clear:even according to the worst scenarios of the emissions of an electric car there would still be a saving in emissions compared to the use of traditional cars", he specifies Alessandro Abbotto, professor of Materials Science at the University of Milan Bicocca.

A first comparison

To calculate the environmental impact of a vehicle it is necessary to do the so-called «life cycle analysis», in English Life cycle assessment (LCA).In this way it is possible to evaluate emissions not only during the use phase of the car, but also during all the other steps:from the extraction of raw materials to its scrapping.«Science converges in saying that electric cars have a significantly lower environmental impact than both petrol and hydrogen cars», explains Abbotto.«The greatest savings are obviously recorded in the actual use phase of the vehicle, during which electric cars produce almost no emissions:neither climate-altering gases, such as CO2, nor pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides", adds the professor.An example cited by New York Times clarifies this difference well.A Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle produces on average 189 grams of CO2 for every mile travelled.The latest model of Toyota Camry on petrol, however, it produces more than double:385 grams of CO2 per mile.

What also makes the difference is the source from which the product is obtained.electricity that powers the electric car.In Italy, for example, only 44% comes from renewable sources.More than half of the energy consumed, however, comes from fossil sources such as coal and natural gas, which, unlike solar and wind, have a strong environmental impact.«Even in this case, however, thepollution that is produced prior to the use of the car is not high enough to nullify the environmental advantages of the electric car", clarifies Abbotto.Over time, then, this form of pollution should gradually reduce.Italy, for example, has set itself the goal of obtaining 75% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030.In other words, in order to truly talk about environmental sustainability, the shift towards the electric car must go hand in hand with the energy transition towards clean sources.

The three problems of the electric car

Like any technology, the electric car is certainly not free from problems.In particular, there are three critical points:electricity consumption, water consumption and raw material recovery.As regards theelectricity, Italy seems to be on the right track.«Many studies show that, even with a fleet of 10 million vehicles, the impact of the sector on overall consumption would be around 5%.A perfectly manageable figure", explains Abbotto.The problem, if anything, could be the "peak periods", which could be resolved with the construction of a network of accumulators.Also the water consumption It doesn't seem to cause too much concern.«In Italy and Europe we shouldn't have any kind of problem – clarifies Abbotto -.The same cannot be said for other countries, for example in North Africa, where fresh water is less available."

The real problem of the electric car, therefore, remains one:the raw materials.To date, the two most used materials to produce batteries are lithium and the cobalt.Cobalt extraction, in particular, produces toxic waste, which can pollute both the surrounding environment and the air.Some NGOs that deal with human rights then point out how in Congo, where around 70% of cobalt is extracted on a global scale, is almost always worked without adequate protection.«Even in the coming years the standard will be represented by cobalt and lithium.And this It's a problem that needs to be solved» admits the Bicocca professor.«Fortunately, the emancipation from cobalt is already well underway.It is important to continue in two directions:on the one hand recycling, on the other the search for alternative materials, such as manganese».

Battery disposal

The problems related to batteries they are not just about their production, but also – and perhaps above all – theirs disposal.At the moment, the most widespread solution consists in giving a "second life" to the batteries, which - once exhausted - can become accumulators of energy.In Italy, for example, EnelX launched the project Pioneer, which involves the use of exhausted batteries to accumulate the energy of a photovoltaic system that powers the airport of Fiumicino, in Rome.«There are many examples both in China and in Europe», confirms Abbotto.«Even after this “second life”, however, it is important not to throw the battery in landfill but to recycle it».For this to happen, however, some more work is needed.The EU has launched some projects, including Acrobat, to find new, more efficient methods of battery recycling.Although promising, the research is still in progress.

What about alternative fuels?

Not all experts agree with the European Union's decision to focus entirely on electric.There are also those who, how Tommaso Lucchini, professor of the Energy department of the Polytechnic of Milan and researcher in the field of fluid machines, suggests a multi-technological approach.«The scientific community has published several letters to express doubts about the strategic choice to focus on a single technology», explains Lucchini.According to the researcher, in fact, the turning point in Brussels risks blocking research on two other promising solutions:the biofuels and i synthetic fuels.The former are obtained from vegetable scraps and waste, while the latter come from clean hydrogen and CO2 seized from the atmosphere.«These types of fuel would allow the decarbonisation progressive of the fleet in circulation, the possibility of maintaining current technologies and exploiting the existing supply network", specifies Lucchini.

According to some studies, the impact of a motor car powered by synthetic fuels would emit an even lower amount of CO2 than electric cars:about 68 grams per kilometre path.«The decarbonisation of transport can only happen with an honest and scientific approach, not a dogmatic or ideological one», insists Lucchini.Even for the e-fuels, However, the research is promising but is still taking its first steps.According to the NGO Transport & Environment, today alternative fuels would be able to cover only a small part of the European vehicle fleet:about 2%.The request of many manufacturers and companies operating in the transport sector is the following:allow the use of alternative fuels for vehicles heavy transport, such as trucks, ships and airplanes.All vehicles for which today electric - unlike light transport - does not represent the most convenient choice.

Cover photo:UNSPLASH / ANDREW ROBERTS